pig in the python
n.— «As a DRI hire, I am part of the group of State employees that has come to be called “the pig in the python.” Prior to us (us being the pig), there were years of chronic under-staffing (the python), with some years having officer intake of just 80 people, and even some years when nobody was hired.» —“Joining the Foreign Service: Re: DS Budget Help” by FSO Mexico Tales from a Small Planet Message Boards Jan. 11, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In Russian, an expression for something tantalizingly close but forever out of reach translates as “Your elbow is close, but you can’t bite it.” Much like the English phrase when pigs fly, it’s another colorful way of describing the...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski’s puzzle this week involves pig Latin, a.k.a. Ig-pay Atin-lay. One of two answers to each clue is a regular English word, and the other is its pig Latin version. For example, what regular English word and its pig Latin...